Once time ran out, she would be defeated by Hood, then captured and taken to her young master, Son of Lin Zhentian. Azuma and Zuikaku by her side wouldn't be able to escape either.
In the end, she would be locked in a basement and forced by that pig-headed Son of Lin Zhentian to do those 'delightful' things every day and night.
Of course, Illustrious would never let such a thing happen. Seeing that there was still plenty of time, she decided to play a bit more!
After thinking it over, Illustrious gripped the silver sword, and silver Prayer Qi erupted like flames. Her aura, like that of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl, surged toward Hood.
"Hee hee, come on! Hood, didn't you want to avenge the humiliation of your last defeat? What are you waiting for?" After her moment of amusement, Illustrious shot toward Hood.
Seeing Illustrious coming like lightning, Hood also erupted with her Five-Star Epic Ship Girl aura. Her entire body was enveloped in powerful Purple Ship Qi as she shot toward the incoming Illustrious. "Hmph! I'll see just how long you can hold on."
"Long enough to see you dead."
"What arrogant talk! Die!"
The two Ship Girls collided in the air again. With a loud bang, a powerful energy shockwave surged from the point of impact. After the collision, the two Ship Girls retreated a distance, then continued flickering through the air.
"Bang bang bang..." Each flicker was accompanied by a thunderous sound and sparks from the clash of power. The resulting energy shockwaves caused the sea below to churn continuously.
"Good, good! Again!" Illustrious happily launched another fierce offensive against Hood.
'This maniac, does her power never wither?' Facing Illustrious's relentless assault, Hood's hand gripping the Tachi was starting to go numb. She couldn't take it anymore; if this continued, she feared she would fall before Illustrious's buff time even expired.
"Get lost!" Hood erupted with a powerful aura. With a cold face and a sharp cry, she forced the incoming Illustrious back. Then, she gripped her crimson Tachi and brandished it at high speed. With every swing, an afterimage of Hood would suddenly appear in various directions around her, each holding a fixed sword-swinging posture.
Only after creating eighteen afterimages did Hood finally stop. Slowly, the eighteen afterimages transformed into crimson energy swords. Each energy sword contained the full-strength strike of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl; it was truly terrifying.
The swords stood horizontally, blades pointing forward, forming a rotating circle around Hood. The eighteen crimson energy swords were suddenly aimed at Illustrious.
"Eighteen Heavenly Meteor Swords!"
Hood gave a low shout that echoed through the sky. With a wave of her right hand and a flash of light, the eighteen crimson energy swords shot toward Illustrious.
The speed of the eighteen energy swords was terrifying. Wherever they passed, space vibrated. They sliced through the azure sky with ear-piercing sonic booms, leaving behind pitch-black trails. Their destructive power was so immense that no one would dare face them.
Seeing the eighteen energy swords Hood had unleashed flying toward her, Illustrious lowered her head, remaining motionless and fully concentrated. If anyone were close enough to look, they would see Hood's Tachi-swinging movements flickering continuously in her eyes.
Illustrious's head suddenly snapped up, and she began to swing her silver sword at high speeds with a tight grip.
Watching Illustrious's movements, Hood's expression shifted slightly before she began to mock her. "Th-this girl is really looking down on me. Does she think she can perform my move just by seeing it once? Puh! Does she really think my techniques are that easy to steal?"
One must know that it took her ten years to learn this Ship Skill. Without the Ship Skill Manual to learn the techniques from, it was impossible to perform. Forcing it would only result in a backlash that would make one spit blood.
Hood said with a face full of disdain, "Hmph! Truly someone who doesn't know the heights of the heavens! I want to see the ridiculous look on your face when you fail and suffer the backlash."
But the result disappointed Hood. With every swing Illustrious made, a phantom image of light would suddenly appear in various directions around her, each phantom maintaining a fixed sword-swinging posture.
After Illustrious swung out eighteen phantoms, she finally stopped. Slowly, the eighteen phantoms transformed into silver energy swords, each containing the full-power strike of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl.
The blades stood horizontally with the edges facing forward, forming a rotating circle around Illustrious. The eighteen silver energy swords then abruptly pointed towards Hood.
"Eighteen Heavenly Meteor Swords!"
Illustrious gave a low shout that echoed through the sky. With a wave of her right hand and a flash of sword light, the eighteen silver energy swords shot violently toward Hood.
The speed of the eighteen energy swords was terrifying. Wherever they passed, space vibrated, and they pierced the blue sky with ear-piercing sonic booms, flashing past and leaving behind pitch-black trails.
The eighteen energy swords of the Eighteen Heavenly Meteor Swords unleashed by Illustrious finally collided with the eighteen energy swords of the same technique unleashed by Hood. In an instant, thunderous roars echoed across the blue sky. The explosions were earth-shattering. As the energy swords, each containing the full power of a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl, collided, they erupted into terrifying energy shockwaves.
The Ship Girls and ordinary people watching below were also affected. Although the main body ships immediately activated their energy shields, some of the penetrating energy shockwaves still rushed toward them. Azuma and the other Ship Girls had to use their power to steady themselves, while Chen Xiaoqiang and the Son of Lin Zhentian were pressed flat against the ground like salted fish, unable to move.
After the explosion, Illustrious and Hood reappeared in the air, facing each other. Both had a trace of fatigue in their eyes; after fighting for so long, their strength was somewhat depleted.
"We've been fighting for so long that I'm getting a bit tired. Let's settle this in one move!" Since the twenty-minute time limit was almost up, Illustrious spoke first.
"What, are you about to run out of this overdrawn power? You're in such a rush. Don't worry, even if you lose, I won't kill you."
"Hmph! What a joke. I don't mind telling you, I can maintain this power for another full day," Illustrious lied without blinking or blushing.
Hearing Illustrious's words and looking at her expressionless face, which showed no flaws, Hood found it hard to believe. Could Illustrious really maintain power comparable to a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl for an entire day?
Impossible, Illustrious must be lying. If she could really last a day, then the buffing Ship Skill she used would have to be at least a Saint-grade Ship Skill! But what if it really was a Saint-grade Ship Skill?
One must know that it usually takes three days to consolidate the realm after upgrading to a Five-Star Epic Ship Girl. Otherwise, a single slip-up could cause one's realm to drop back down to a Four-Star Epic Ship Girl.
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